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Western playoff picture: Predators, Coyotes, and Ducks all clinch playoff spots

Columbus Blue Jackets v Nashville Predators

NASHVILLE, TN - APRIL 08: Patric Hornqvist #27 of the Nashville Predators celebrates after scoring a goal on Steve Mason #1 of the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 8, 2011 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

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Western Conference playoff race

z - 1. Vancouver - 115 pts
y - 2. San Jose - 103 pts
y- 3. Detroit - 102 pts
x-4. Nashville - 99 pts
x-5. Phoenix - 99 pts
x-6. Los Angeles - 98 pts
x-7. Anaheim - 97 pts
8. Chicago - 97 pts
9. Dallas - 95 pts

z - clinched conference title
y – clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Chicago 4, Detroit 2

The optimists among the hockey brethren will say the Blackhawks came to play and took it to the Detroit Red Wings. Skeptics among hockey fans will say the Red Wings absolutely mailed it in and never really gave themselves a chance to win. So which is it? As usual, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. There’s no questioning that the Blackhawks came out and played one of their most effective periods in the 1st to get off on the right foot. Yet on the other hand, there’s no questioning the fact that the Wings players just didn’t have the edge needed to compete with a desperate team. It’s not that the game was meaningless for the Wings—the loss has them sitting in 3rd place with 102 points (one point behind the Sharks for 2nd).

For Chicago, the win was just the first step of handling their business to make the playoffs. Entering into the home-and-home series with Detroit, the Hawks could say they controlled their own destiny. If they earned 3 out of a possible 4 points in the two games, it wouldn’t matter what the 9th place Dallas Stars did in their games. In the first act of the final stretch in the regular season, the Hawks knocked out an impressive effort. If they can earn at least an overtime loss (or a win) against the Wings on Sunday afternoon, they’ll be in the playoffs for the third year in a row.

Nashville 4, Columbus 1

Every team has a certain team that seems to have their number. Sometimes there’s a certain city where a team fails to perform. For the Columbus Blue Jackets, that team is undoubtedly the Predators and the city is Nashville, TN. After losing 4-1 to help the Predators secure a playoff spot for the sixth time in seven years, the Blue Jackets are now winless in their last 17 games in Nashville. In Friday’s game, Columbus managed 45 shots on goal against Pekka Rinne—only to see him turn away 44. Combine Rinne’s spectacular effort with a two-goal performance from Patric Hornqvist (7 points in his last 3 games), and it’s no wonder the Predators are looking at potential playoff opponents. For the Blue Jackets, they will have a top 10 pick in the entry draft for the tenth time in eleven drafts. That’s probably not the kind of organizational consistency they’re looking for.

Minnesota 3, Edmonton 1

The Minnesota Wild and their new #1 line (Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Andrew Brunette and Mikko Koivu) performed well as the Minnesota Wild clinched at least a #12 seed in the Western Conference standings. If they can get help from the Predators, Minnesota may even be able to jump over the Blues and into the #11 seed.

Meanwhile, Edmonton continued to weigh the pros and cons between Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Adam Larsson, and Gabriel Landeskog. Clearly the debate between those prospects would be more competitive than their team on the ice.

Dallas 3, Colorado 2

There were a bunch of scenarios the Stars were hoping for on Friday night, but each and every one of the scenarios revolved around Dallas winning their remaining games. After winning the rest of their games, there were a bunch of situations where the Stars would be able to sneak into the playoffs as another team faltered down the stretch. One Friday night, they were able to take care of the most important part of the plan as they went into Colorado and escaped with a 3-2 win. Since the Avalanche have struggled so much this season, it may be hard to believe that the Stars had been outscored 13-1 at Pepsi Center in their last three visits. But tonight was a different kind of night and Dallas was able to control the game from the opening face-off.

Near the end of the game, Mike Ribeiro went down and blocked a shot—but initial reports say he’ll back and ready to take the ice against the Minnesota Wild in the last game of the season. As is been stated ad nauseam, if they can win and the Hawks lose in regulation, the Stars will make the playoffs. They may need help, but they’re still alive going into Game 82. That in itself is a surprise to a lot of people who expected the Stars to struggle this season.

Phoenix 4, San Jose 3

With the Red Wings losing earlier in the evening, the Sharks had a chance to lock-up the 2nd seed in the West with a win over the Coyotes. So much for that. In what was a theme around the NHL team, the team with a chance to clinch showed far more desperation and earned the right to play in the NHL’s second season. The Coyotes jumped out to a 4-1 lead only to hold on for dear life as the Sharks came storming back. The win gives Phoenix 99 points for the season and temporarily puts them in the 5th seed in the conference. If they win their last game against San Jose, they’ll have a chance to finish the season in the 4th spot for the second consecutive season. For all of the turmoil surround the team over the last two seasons, there aren’t many teams that can lay claim to home-ice advantage in two consecutive seasons.

Anaheim 2, Los Angeles 1

The Ducks had one thing on their mind going into the game: “win and we’re in.” Thanks to Teemu Selanne and his two goals, the Ducks were able to beat the Kings to secure their spot in the playoffs. Dan Ellis filled-in for the injured Ray Emery and Jonas Hiller with a 23-save performance to help Anaheim get to the promised land. After the game, Selanne said they would come with the same kind of effort to improve their seeding on Saturday—but that’s easier said than done.

Going into the game, the Kings controlled their own destiny for home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. If they were able to win both of their final two games against the Ducks, they’d earn the 4th seed no matter what any of the other teams did. Well, after the loss to the Ducks and the Preds and Coyotes winning, the Kings dropped down to the 6th spot with a single game left in the regular season. It’s a fact that wasn’t lost on Kings’ defenseman Matt Greene:

“I think we need some help now. I think this is the first time where it hasn’t been in our own hands, and that’s not what we wanted to do, but we’ll come back tomorrow. We’ve got to win tomorrow. Everybody wants to go into the playoffs with a win under our belts, playing hard and doing the right things. Hopefully that comes tomorrow. Maybe we get some help and maybe we don’t, but our focus now is on tomorrow, and not what’s going on around the league.”